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gtnitrh faire steat @fitta J.' P. TIRRELL, OF NORTH BRIDGEWATER, MASSACHUSETTS.

Letters .Patent No. 61,369, dated January 22, 1867.

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TO ALL WHOM' IT MAY CONCERN:

Be it known that I, J. P. 'IIRRELL, of North Bridgewater, in the county of Plymouth, and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in the Manufacture of Shoe Laeings; and I do hereby declare that the following, taken in connection `with the drawings which accompany and form part of this specification, is a description of my invention suicicnt to enable those skilled inthe art to practise it.

In themanufacture of round shoe lacings from leather, the common practice is to rotate a square strip along its length, between two boards or other surfaces, the movement and pressure of one of which against the strip and relatively to the other, turns the strip and condenses and reduces its-corners, until the strip becomes round or approximately round or circular in cross-section, instead of square or rectangular.

It is to such manner of formingA the lacings that .this invention relates, the invention consisting primarily in an organization or arrangement of mechanism by which, in combination with a reciprocating movement given to one of two surfaces between which the lacing is passed, a feed or progressive movement is imparted to the lacing strip to carry its whole length between the friction or rounding surfaces.

The drawings represent a machine embodying the invention, A showing a plan, B an end view, and C a side elevation of the same. On a frame, a, is mounted in suitable bearings a driving-shaft, b, which carries at one end a crank, e, which works in a slot in a plate, d, fixed Ato a board, c, which board is mounted so as to slide freely in ways or guides,f, and so that rotation of the crank imparts to it a reciprocating movement, as will be readily understood. Adjacent to the outer surface of this board, and with its inner surface in juxtaposition therewith, another board, g, is placed, this board being so hung Ito the frame a as to swing down from theboard e when desirable. The shaft b is connected with and imparts rotation to a parallel shaft, 7i, (through pulleys z' and band c,) and this shaft h carries at one end a worm-wheel, Z, which meshes into and imparts rotative movement to a segment gear, m, on a shaft, n, upon which is mounted asemicircular wheel or segment drum, the movement of the gear m imparting corresponding movement to this segment drum. At the front end of this drum are nippers, o', provided with a tripping orclosing lever, p. When the strip to be converted into lacing is introduced, the jaws of these nippers stand just below the lower edge of the reciprocating board e. The board g, being dropped down, oueend of the strip is carried down in front of the board e, and inserted in the nipper jaws, 'the lever of which is then turned to grasp the end tightly between .the jaws. The board g is then carried up against the strip and locked in position by a slide, g, the upper end of which'carries a spring, which, while impinging against and holding the board in position, allows it te yield somewhat to the irregularities in the thickness of the strip. The parts being -in this position, rotation is imparted to the shaft b, (either by a handcrank or `by other poweig) this rotation reciprocating the board b, and rubbing and rolling the section of the leather strip between the two boards, reducing-its angles until this leather assumes a round or cylindrical form. While this operation proceeds, the movement of the shaft b imparts rotation to the shaft 7i, and thereby to the drum segment Z, and thus the nippers draw down the strip, causingdit to feed through the reducing or rounding surfaces, and thus automatically converting the whole length of the strip into a lacing of uniform roundness. The lacing, as it is drawn down, is laid over the surface of the drum segment, and as the centre of rotation of this drum'surface, o, is in or nearly in the horizontal plane of the lower edge of the rubbing surfaces, it will be obvious that as the wheel rotates, carrying with it the lacing, the circumference of the wheel occupies throughout its movement the same relative position to theseffrict'ion surfaces, and that the draught upon the lacing is, therefore, always directly downwards, or in a tangential lineto its place of meeting the surface of the wheel. The diameter of the wheel may be such that a quarter rotation of the wheel will feed through stripI of the leather; and to release the formed lacing and carry back the wheel to its normal position after the lacing is formed, and to lower the swinging board g, thus bringing all the parts into position for reception of a new strip, a mechanism is applied as follows: i

The slide q is held in position, as the strip is being operated upon, by a pin, r, resting on a shoulder, s, in a latch-bar, t. This bar t swings on a hinge connecting it to thenframe a, and a link, u, connects it to an arm, e, extending from a wheel, w, on the shaft n. Another arm, ze, extends from this wheel into the path of movement of ,a projection, y, from the drum Z. The end of the worm-shaft L turns in a bearing made in a rocker-arm, e, jointed at one end to a standard, a', and resting on en arm, b', having its lower endjointed to the wheel w near its circumference. Now,'as the drum segment o completes its forwardmovement, the arm :v is struck by the projection y, the movement of which turns the wheel zu, which lifts the arm z, and thereby carries the wormwheel out of connection with the segment gear. This movement lofthe wheel w also turns the arm v, and draws the shoulder ofthe latch-bar t away from the pin r, lwhich allows the slide. to drop and the board g to fall away from the board e. While the latchbar is thus hcld the falling ofthe slide carries the pin r down against an incline, d, and thus locks the latch-bar, and through it the wheel w, to whichit is connected, in the position to which they were carried bythe movement of the arm x. This' vleaves the wheel segment Zfree to rotate, and it is returned to its normal position by aA weight, e. At the same time the projection y strikes the arm z, said 4arm is also struck by the nipper lever p, thereby opening the nippers, and releasing the end ofthe lacing, the lacing being thus left, by the 'simultaneous separation of the friction surfaces and opening of the unippers, free to be withdrawn. The wheel having returned to its normal position, anotherl strip is introduced as before, when, upon moving up the slide, the incline d is released from the pin r, and the worm-wheel againfalls into connection 'with the segment gear, thus bringing all the parts into position for operating upon the strip just introduced.

It will be observed that all lthe movements are' automatic, excepting the raising of the slide after the strip is introduced. Other means, however, may be employed for releasing the lacing when finished, and for bringing the parts back to position, these being shown as one methodof eifeting the same. It will be obvious that a gang or seriesof these lacing-forming mechanisms may be arranged along in a`frame, a, other swinging boards, g, acting either in connection with the same board e, or with distinct ones, as might be desirable. To adjust the machine to the length of the lacing to be'formed and released, and so as to be able to make lacings of whatever length may be desirable, the arm a: is made movable and adjustable relatively to the wheel w, for which purpose the arm'turns on'the wheel-shaft, and has a screw, j, which it is confined to the flange of the wheel. It will be seen, therefore, that by loosening the screw andy turning the wheel more or less, the position of the arm rv, relatively to the arm v, thrbugh which the latch-harris r-cleased, may be varied and adjusted in accordance with the length of the lacingto be formed. v

I claim combining with friction surfaces having a'relative reeiprocation, a co-operating mechanism, which shall draw or feed the strip betweenthese surfaces, vsubstantially as and for the purpose set forth.

I also claim, in combination with such an arrangement or organization, mechanism for releasing the strip from the nippers, mechanism for separating the abrading surfaces, and mechanism for returning the parts to normal position, substantially as set forth.

.1. P. TIRRELL.

i Witnesses:

J. S4. FULLER, J. A. SMITIL f 

